W.G. Snuffy Walden

On growing up in Texas; on his nickname "Snuffy"; on moving from Houston to East Texas and growing up on a cattle ranch; on loving the music of Elvis Presley; on TV shows he liked as a kid; on wanting to be a doctor; on learning to play instruments and getting very interested in music his senior year of high school

On playing guitar and playing music with his brother in the band The Showmen (which became PSY123); on loving blues and rock and roll and disliking country music at the time; on starting to write his own music; on enrolling in college and dropping out to play music in a strip club

On feeling like he could have a career as a composer; on his first professional job; on playing with B.J. Thomas when he was 14; on recording albums in the 1970s, playing with the band Aphrodite, and traveling to England; on touring with the band Stray Dog

On playing back up for Eric Burdon; on his drug use; on starting to produce and moving to Los Angeles; on writing music professionally and his escalating drug and alcohol use; on quitting music, and returning to play guitar for the movie Staving Alive

On appearing on Laverne & Shirley in 1979; on his first composition for TV - for thirtysomething; on composing the theme for thirtysomething; on instruments in the thirtysomething score; on using a Coke bottle in the score

On scoring thirtysomething, contd.; on his musical partnership with Stewart Levin; on composing for The Wonder Years

On his musical partnership with Stewart Levin; on the theme to thirtysomething; on the influence of the theme for thirtysomething

On composing for The Wonder Years; on "Winnie's theme" for The Wonder Years

On composing for TV movies: Winnie, Roe vs. Wade; on differences between composing for series and for TV movies; on composing for TV movies Roe v. Wade, The Outsiders, Burning Bridges, Guess Who's Coming For Christmas?

On composing music for Sisters, and I'll Fly Away; on his approach to writing music; on the theme to I'll Fly Away

On writing music for episodic television; on the challenges of scoring to dialogue

On the thirtysomething theme standing apart from the rest of the show; on building a library of music cues for a show, researching music, and his studio space; on how he decides when and where to add music to a show; on working with producers and network executives

On working with a lyricist; on proteges; on rarely going to set; on recording with an orchestra; on composing for the TV movie Rise and Walk: The Dennis Byrd Story

On composing for the Stephen King miniseries The Stand; on composing for My So-Called Life

On differences between composing for sitcoms and dramas; on composing for The Jackie Thomas Show and Roseanne; on building a library of cues for sitcoms; on composing the theme for The West Wing; on composing for Ellen, Tom, Roseanne, The Drew Carey Show, Norm, and Sports Night

On composing for Providence and Once and Again; on writing themes for characters; on music for Lipstick Jungle

On composing for The West Wing; on composing the prologue theme for The West Wing and marrying the graphics, visuals, and music together; on using a full orchestra on the series

On a demonstration of The West Win g theme; on working with a live orchestra; on comparisons of The West Wing theme to Aaron Copeland's compositions

On composing for George Lopez, The Brotherhood of Poland, New Hampshire, Miracles, Huff, Kidnapped, and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip; on Aaron Sorkin's love of H.M.S. Pinafore

On composing for Friday Night Lights; on his Emmy win for The West Win g; on meaningful moments of recognition in his career; on then-current projects; on working on several Warner Brothers shows

On the most important thing a composer can bring to a television show; on what he strives to achieve with his work; on composing for television being mostly freelance work; on rarely retaining the rights to his creations

On his style; on advice to aspiring composers; on how he'd like to be remembered; on a demo of the first piece he ever wrote - for his father